A burnt child dreads the fire
by wingedsanya
Summary: When the heroes get involved in a particularily nasty string of murders, Ivan and Pao-lin decide that they aren't going to be left out anymore. Little do they know that sometimes it's better to not get involved...
1. Chapter 1

Well, this is my first ever Tiger & Bunny fic. It doesn't really have any pairings, but you can interpret it however you wish. I did a bit of research on the topic before I wrote this, and found it really fascinating a gross. So I toned it down. Yes, everyone, this is somewhat toned down. Not very toned down, but enough so it wouldn't be M rated. I really look forward to feedback, and I hope you enjoy this! It's my first time writing horror, so...

Disclaimer: I don't own Tiger & Bunny. I would love to, but it belongs to Sunrise.

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><p>July 18, 3:30 PM<p>

"You remember the plan, right Old Man?" Barnaby said jokingly.

"I'm not senile, Bunny! And where did 'Old Man' come from? I thought we were on first name basis!"

"…"

"Oh! That was a joke!"

"Of course."

"… Since when did you have a sense of humor?"

"Everyone has a sense of humor, Kotetsu."

"Are you sick?"

"What-Where did that come from?"

"You're smiling. It's creepy. You never smile unless the camera is on you."

"Goddammit Kotetsu! I'm happy! Jake is dead! My life has new meaning!"

"You don't seem too happy."

"That's because you're aggravating me."

"But-!" Kotetsu was interrupted by a familiar "Bonjour Heroes!" from Agnes.

"Be careful, everyone. This man might be armed, and he might have killed someone. I want you to all be prepared. And someone shield Blue Rose in the beginning. We don't want her getting shot up."

"If you made me a better costume you wouldn't have to worry about that!" Blue Rose muttered under her breathe, much to the amusement of Fire Emblem.

In other words, it was a perfectly normal day for the heroes of Sternbild. They were all poised to infiltrate what, as far as they knew, seemed to be a kidnapping and/or hostage situation. However, when you are someone as misfortunate as Kotetsu T. Kaburagi, life never is that simple, if you can call a hostage situation simple.

At the signal, the heroes surrounded the house while Barnaby and Kotetsu charged in. Breaking down the door, they burst in on…

"Oh God…" Kotetsu breathed. The other Heroes ran into the room, worried.

"Sky High! Get those the kids OUT!" Kotetsu shouted. Sky High, nodded, then grabbed Ivan and Pao-Lin, covering their eyes while guiding them out of the room. Barnaby and Antonio were blocking the sight from the cameras while Fire Emblem started to argue with Agnes.

"AGNES! GET RID OF THE CAMERAS NOW!" He roared, his voice deepening.

Kotetsu turned to Blue Rose, who was petrified. "Maybe you should go too."

She swallowed nervously. "I'm fine. I can handle it."

Kotetsu looked at her skeptically. She took a deep breath, and forced herself to stop shaking. "I'm Blue Rose, after all. I can handle it." She repeated. Kotetsu nodded.

"If you want to leave, I won't stop you."

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><p>Ivan and Pao-lin were sitting on the steps leading into the apartment. Hero TV staff kept pushing cameras and microphones into their faces but neither of them understood what was going on. All they knew was that Tiger was taking control of the situation, and Sky High had grabbed them before they could see anything.<p>

"What do you think happened?" Pao-lin whispered. All the cameras had backed off, and they were pretty much alone. Police had entered the room, and a heated discussion was taking place, but neither of them could hear the words.

"I think someone was murdered." Ivan replied. "But it must be really bad, if they removed us. We've both seen dead bodies before."

"It smelled really bad in there."

"Yeah."

Pao-lin sighed. Stay optimistic, she reminded herself. Tiger's probably just being over protective again. I'm sure it's not too bad…

And that was when the door opened and they started to bring the body out in pieces.


	2. Chapter 2

**I don't own Tiger & Bunny. **

Here we go, chapter 2! Not much Pao-lin or Ivan, but it has lots of Kotetsu. That should make you all happy, dear non-existent readers.

There's a bit of gore in this chapter. This has to be the goriest thing I've ever written. Again, first time writing horror.

It's also my first time writing this:

Please Review. Usually, I hate it when people beg for reviews, but seriously guys, this is ridiculous. If I don't get reviews, I can't figure out how to improve this story. If I don't get reviews, I can't figure out if people actually like this story. And if I don't know if there are people out there who actually care about this story, I'm not going to continue. And that's the truth. If no one cares, then I see no reason why I should bother to spend hours writing this. Not to mention that I took an entire day out of my summer break to research serial killers and their methods and psychology, and I will spend a great deal more time researching this and more as the story goes on. And if no one cares, I'm not going to make this commitment, I'm going to stop writing this story. Or, I'll just write a super unsatisfying end where everyone dies. Is the lack of reviews because it's not romance or something? Or is it such a pitifully mediocre story that it's not even worth it?

Sorry for bitching at you, but honestly. Please review.

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><p>"Kaede?" Tiger didn't know where he was, but he had a bad feeling. Everything was dark, and he didn't know how, but they had gotten separated. He couldn't see more than a few feet in front of his face.<p>

"Kaede?" He repeated, but all he heard was his voice echoing in the darkness. Then the laughter started. He turned to run towards the source, but he tripped over something. He sat up, grumbling, then moved in to take a closer look at the object he'd tripped over.

Karina. She wasn't breathing. He recoiled in horror, and scrambled across the floor, before his hand made contact with something soft. Pao-lin. Her face was frozen in fear, and unmistakably dead. Her hairclip was lying next to her, crushed. With a yell, Tiger attempted stand up and run. He had to find Kaede. He needed to make sure she was okay… his legs froze up and he slipped. There was a puddle of blood on the floor. In the center of it… Tiger didn't want to look. But he had to check. He had to make sure.

"Ivan…" That purple jacket he was so proud of was ripped and drenched with the stuff. There was so much blood, more blood than Tiger would have thought that could be contained in a small body like Ivan's.

He couldn't take it. He started to run. The voice was still laughing.

"YOU BASTARD! KAEDE!" He had to find her, but it was so dark. He followed the laughter through the dark, twisted halls. She had to be here somewhere. For some reason, he couldn't activate his power. It didn't matter. He had made a promise…

He turned a corner, and his breath caught in his throat. There she was, lying on a bed. She looked perfect. Alive.

If not for the fact that her chest wasn't moving. Her run over and started to shake her. She was as cold as ice.

"Wake up! Wake up! KAEDE!" He pulled her into a hug. "Please wake up. I can't. I can't lose you too. _Please."_

Tiger woke up. In a way, he had known it had been a dream all along, but it didn't make it any less terrifying. He looked down.  
>"You know, falling asleep over case files will give you nightmares." Bunny handed Tiger a cup of coffee.<p>

"Tell me about it. Do you have anything stronger?"  
>"No drinking on duty. But, to tell you the truth, you aren't the only one who wants some. Maybe we can get Antonio to pick up a six pack."<p>

Tiger looked down at the case file. This made the sixth killing. "Listen, Bunny…"

"Hm?"

"I'll catch up with you in second. You can start strategy meeting without me. I have a personal call to make."

As soon as Barnaby had left, Tiger dialed his mother's number. As the phone rang, Tiger desperately hoped the Kaede would answer.

"Hi Dad."

"Kaede! You're here!"

"Yeah Dad. I am. Unlike you."

Tiger ignored the insult and sighed in relief. "Listen, Kaede. I called to tell you to be careful. There's a killer running around here, and I wanted to warn you."

"I don't live in Sternbild. I'll be fine."

"I just wanted to make sure. Be aware, okay?"  
>"Dad…"<p>

"Don't talk to strangers, or get into any weird white vans."

"Dad…"

"Always make sure Grandma knows where you are, and always charge your phone."

"_Dad…"_

"I have to go. Remember, Daddy loves you!"

He hung up.

"First order of business. All minors, please leave the room, you're off the case."

Tiger ignored Dragon Kid and Blue Rose's protest. Origami looked as if he wasn't sure whether or not he should be pissed off or relieved.

"Do I have to get Sky High to remove you again?" Origami dragged Dragon Kid out by the back of her jumpsuit. Tiger sighed. He had won.

"Eh?" Blue Rose sat in her chair, looking down right stubborn.

"I told you to leave."  
>"I'm not going to."<p>

"You're off the case."

"No I'm not." Tiger glanced over at Barnaby. He shrugged and said, "I'm really interested to see who wins. You're both so stubborn."

15 minutes later, Blue rose was still in her seat, with a smug look on her face as Tiger pretended to ignore her.

If you have never been to a hero strategy meeting, you're missing out. It's rather fantastic. There's lots of arguing and yelling.

Tiger was attempting to present the information about the previous murders, while Barnaby was trying to shut all the other heroes up, since each of them had their own idea on how they should go about catching the killer. In the midst of all this chaos, Pao-lin was attempting to knock the door down.

"Perhaps I'm coming at a bad time?" The staff and sponsors had entered. All the heroes automatically shut up.

"Oh, hehe, not at all. We were just… discussing."

"Good." The room was filled with an awkward silence, except for the steady pounding on the door, and Ivan attempting to calm her down.

"We've come up with a plan." Said one of the sponsors. "Agnes, why don't you brief them?"

"Well, judging from the success in the Jake Martinez incident, we were thinking of maybe sending in a hero as bait."

If possible, the room was even more quiet. Nathan was the first to speak.

"No offense, but what 'success' are we talking about?" One good thing about having Nathan was that, because he was his own boss, he could express the heroes' collected sentiments without having to worry about getting fired.

"Well, we send out one of our younger heroes, since it appears this guy goes for children and young adults and…"

"No." Everyone turned to look at Tiger. He was practically shaking with anger.

"No way in hell. I'm not sending out anyone to get killed, especially not a kid. We may not be able to act like it on camera, but we are a team." All the other heroes nodded and started voicing their agreement. Tiger walked over to the door and threw it open. Ivan and Pao-lin, who had been eavesdropping, fell forwards and landed on the floor. He gestured out.

"If you don't like it, you can leave." The room erupted in chaos.

"How come she gets to stay!"

"It's a perfectly legit idea!"

"Are you CRAZY?"

"I mean, tell 'em Ivan!"

"Err, we should stay?"

"We heroes are sticking together!"

"Well said, Mr. Wild! And again, well said!"

"If you don't like it, what are your ideas?"

"SHUT UP!" The room went quiet.

"I don't know about the rest of you, but when I became a hero, I made a promise." Scenes from his nightmare flashed in his head.

Kotetsu turned his back on everyone and walked out of the room.

"I promised I would protect all the children of Sternbild, and that includes Heroes."


	3. Chapter 3

I'd like to thank all of you wonderful reviewers for motivating me to continue writing. :) I do feel like a real bitch for my ranting at yoou guys, though.

About ages: I really have no idea how old people are, but I have my guesses. I'd say Karina is 17 or 18, Pao-lin is 12 or 13, and as for Ivan... He's difficult. However, through research, I determined he can be no older than 19. Why? The drinking age in Japan is 20, and we have seen that he is not old enough to drink yet. These could be off by a lot, but they seem to work. Meh, if I'm wrong, I'm wrong.

I'm not too proud of this chapter, it seems a little sappy, but it's okay. I really wanted to say that, even though Kaede doesn't say that he's cool, the younger heroes (who have all been daughterzoned/son...zoned?) probably think that he's really cool. The last part was difficult, because I wanted to do the whole switching views thing. It would have worked better in an anime, but we can just use our imagination!

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><p>Chapter 3<p>

Ivan and Pao-lin were sitting outside the conference room. Pao-lin had finally calmed down, but she was still furious.

"How can he do this? He's letting Karina stay! You're older than her, and you have to stay out."

"Well, she's more assertive than me. Besides, I'm fine with not getting involved."

"Hmph."

Pao-lin crossed her arms, and sighed. She understood Kotetsu's argument, but she wasn't happy.

"I may not want to get involved, but I can see your side." Pao-lin looked over at Ivan, astonished.

"You really want to help Tiger too, right?" He drew his knees up to his chest, then looked up and smiled at her.

"I… want to be like him. I want to be a hero. I want to save someone, to protect someone. He may be a goofy old man, but he always does the right thing. He doesn't have a reason to help someone, and he doesn't need one."

"Ivan…"

"He's done so much for the both of us, right? He always worries about everyone else first, and he takes on too much. If somehow, some way, I can pay him back, I'd like to do it. He's always saying how he wishes his daughter would say that he's cool. I just…" Ivan blushed a little. "I want him to know that I think he's cool."

Pao-lin smiled. "I think he's cool, too." She got to her feet, and thrust her fist in the air.

"I'll show him. I'll help him fulfill his promise! I'll find that man, so Tiger doesn't need to worry anymore!"

She let her hand fall. Her previous words, which had almost been shouts, echoed around the empty hallway.

"I'll surely find a way to protect that wish."

Ivan grinned, then got to his feet as well. "C'mon, we'll go to my apartment first. We can come up with a plan together."

As the two of them ran off, Keith turned the corner and watched them race down the hall. He briefly wondered if he should stop them, but decided against it. After all, it's hard to say no to a scene like that.

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><p>"So far, victims seem to share no real connections. The victims are both male and female, range from many different backgrounds, and are all minors." Barnaby stated. Antonio groaned and buried his face in his arms.<p>

"So, in other words, we have no idea about his motivation," he said.

Barnaby pushed up his glasses and looked sternly at the heroes. "There are a few different types of serial killers. Some believe that they are acting under divine will. Others believe that they are ridding society of evil by targeting a certain group, like prostitutes. Others do it for power or control, and many derive sexual pleasure from killing."

Karina raised her hand, looking slightly sick. "How do you know all this?"

"I've been studying and researching these things for a long time in an attempt to find my parents killers."

Everyone in the room became enthralled with their feet.

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><p>"Aw crap. It's raining!" Ivan said.<p>

"Let's run! I don't want to get wet!" Ivan took off his jacket and held it above their heads.

"Ready?"

"Yeah!"

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><p>Nathan entered the room, looking rather shaken up.<p>

"Oi? Are you okay?" Kotetsu asked.

"We've found a connection between the victims."

"That's great! What is it?"

Nathan took a deep breath.

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><p>"Aah! It's getting stronger!"<p>

"Hurry! Maybe we can find a cab!"

Their feet struck the wet pavement as they ran, slipping and sliding, but still having a good time. They were filled with enthusiasm, and a rainstorm wasn't going to bring them down.

"Look! There's a cab!"

Ivan started waving and the cab pulled up beside them.

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><p>"All of the victims are NEXT."<p>

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><p>The cab driver rolled down the window.<p>

"You kids need a ride?"


	4. Chapter 4

Alright! Chapter 4 is up! The story is close to being done. I'm sorry I didn't update for a while, but I was on a trip and then recovering from this trip.

Poor Pao-lin and Ivan got themselves into more trouble. The final scene with Tiger was kind of written in frustration to ep 20. Don't worry, this time he makes the right deduction.

Disclaimer: I don't own. I'd like to, but I don't.

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><p>Pao-lin felt nauseous. Everything was dark, and it felt as though her brain was being squeezed out through her eyes. Her heart felt as though it was beating unnaturally loud and fast.<p>

Calm down. Think. Take stock of your own surroundings. This is what the other heroes always told her, just in case she got into a situation like this.

Calm down. Good, that was right. Nathan had constantly lectured her on this; the worst thing you could do was to panic. Take deep, regular breaths. Clear your mind of all unnecessary thoughts. Supress those panicked thoughts. The most important thing to do is to keep your head and make a plan. Think.

Take stock of your surroundings. She was lying on the floor. It was tile, most likely. The air was cold, and smelled like mildew. She could hear a steady dripping noise in the background. The dripping echoed around the area.

Drip. Drop. Drip…

No. Focus. That's not important right now. What's your condition? She was stiff and achy, probably from lying on the floor. Her arms were twisted behind her, tied with rope. She briefly wondered if she could burn through it with her power, but discarded that idea. If there were flammable items in the room, she might set them on fire too. There was a nasty piece of cloth stuffed into her mouth. She was trapped, and she felt tears welling up in her eyes.

She took a deep breath. She had to find Ivan and find a way out. She stiffened. Ivan! She'd almost forgotten. Where was he? He couldn't be… No. She shook her head violently. She raised her head slightly. It was still too dark to make anything out. She'd have to use her power.

Electricity crackled and glowed as it filled the room with light. Pao-lin felt herself weakening. The last thing she could remember was the two of them in the backseat of the taxi. It wasn't until Ivan noticed that they were in a completely different part of Sternbild that the driver had attacked. He'd thrown something in the back seat, knock out gas.

Then she'd woken up here. She opened her eyes, and searched the room. It was a bathroom, and it was tiny. She was curled up by the door, and Ivan was lying by the bathtub. Relief flooded through her. Now she needed to get his attention. She sent a small spark over to him. It touched his arm, and her jolted for a second. He tuned his head to face her.

He was not in good shape. His forehead was cut and bruised, as though someone had slammed him into something to knock him out, his eyes were unofocused, and his breathing was irregular. However, that didn't stop him from giving her a reassuring look when their eyes made contact.

He blinked a couple times. She looked at him quizzically, before it dawned on her. Morse code.

He started up again, and she mentally jotted down the letters.

"I have an idea."

"What?"

"I need you to get closer."

They inched toward each other until they were right next to each other. She felt his warmth next to her for a couple minute. That's when Ivan started to glow.

Imagine what it must be like to see yourself suddenly appear. A perfect copy just popping up out of nowhere. It can be a bit unsettling.

Pao-lin knew that it was just Ivan doing his thing, but she could see what she looked like right now. Just a small girl all tied up and lying on a dirty bathroom floor. She felt a sort of pain in her chest. She looked helpless and tiny. That's when the her she was staring at started grinning evilly, and the ropes that had been holding Ivan slipped off.

She looked at him in amazement as he slowly sat up and spat out the gag. He then started to untie her.

"Thanks. You aren't that much smaller than me, but it's enough to get the ropes off. Now we just use your power to blast the door off."

"What happened to your face?"

Ivan grimaced.

"I wasn't fully knocked out when he tried to get us. I fought back… and I kind of bit him. He wasn't at all happy about that."

Pao-lin nodded, still rubbing circulation back into her wrists. Both of them were shaking from the exertion of using their abilities in their conditions. She stood up slowly.

That was funny. Everything was going dark and blurry. She shook her head once. Everything was spiraling.

"Pao-lin? Are you okay?" She nodded, and shook him off. All she needed was a blast of electricity.

"Pao-lin! Can you hear me? Sit down! You shouldn't over exert yourself!" Ivan grabbed her, and Pao-lin let off the charge. The last thing Pao-lin knew before everything turned black and she fell toward the ground was Ivan's scream and the scent of burning flesh.

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><p>The Heroes raced out of the building, shouting into their wrist bands, and cellphones, trying to warn them. A NEXT killer… Tiger didn't want to think about the possibilities.<p>

"Split up! Go in pairs! Try to contact them, and meanwhile, keep on the lookout for anything weird!" Barnaby was shouting. "Rock Bison, Sky High, stay here in case a call comes in!"

Tiger continued to run down the street. Barnaby put on a burst of speed and caught up to him.

"Oi! Kotetsu!" He didn't pay attention.

"They're probably fine!" Tiger turned on him.

"And what if they're not? What if they're in danger?"

"Give them a chance! They can take care of themselves! They're not helpless. You don't have to protect them! They're heroes too! They'll be okay!"

The partners stood facing each other in the rain. Both were breathing heavily and glaring at each other.

Tiger's shoulders fell, and he looked down at the ground.

"You're right. I need to relax."

He looked up to see Barnaby holding his hand out to him.

"C'mon, old man. Let's go find them."

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><p>Tiger left work dejected. He pulled out his cellphone and dialed. He put it up to his ear and waited as it began to ring.<p>

"HI! This is Ivan Karelin! I'm unable to come to the phone right now, so please leave your name and number at the tone! SHUN SHUN!"

Tiger hung up. None of them had been able to contact the two. He walked into the Hero Bar. He had promised to meet Ben there, but his heart wasn't really in it.

And that was a miraculous thing about Ben. He could take one look at Kotetsu and know exactly how he was feeling. Kotetsu just let all the troubles inside him spill out.

As they got ready to leave, Ben offered Kotetsu a ride.

They climbed into his cab.

"It smells a bit weird in here." Kotetsu comented. Ben shrugged.

"Well, I've been sharing the cab with this new guy. He's a bit strange, but he's a nice person. He had it earlier, so it must have been one of his customers."

They were almost to Kotetsu's apartment when he dropped his keys. Muttering curses to himself, tiger crawled under the seat to retrieve them. His hand made contact with an object. He pulled it out.

It was a gray hero band, made for someone with a small wrist. It looked as if it had been forcibly torn off, and there was something dark crusted on to it.

Ben looked at Kotetsu quizzically.

"Is something wrong?" Kotetsu was digging frantically under the seat. He pulled out another small band and a pair of cellphones.

Something was very wrong.

Ivan's hero band was covered in blood.

Something was very, very wrong indeed.


	5. Chapter 5

Short chapter this time. However, next chapter will be mostly action, which might take a while. This chapter was mostly build-up, so it wasn't particularily fun to write. However, I hope it's more fun to read!

Next chapter might be the last, followed by a short epilogue.

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><p>Chap 5<p>

Barnaby stood at the front of the room. He looked perfectly calm, but Kotetsu knew better. The constant fiddling with his glasses and ring was a sure sign that, beneath the surface, Bunny was shaken.

"According to his previous murders, there is a chance we might find them alive. However, there is a greater chance he will dispose of them quicker if he knows we're on to him. Again, be careful. This guy overpowered two heroes."

He stopped to gesture at the screen behind him.

"The suspects name is Andrew Larch. We don't have much information on him, so we don't know if he's a NEXT or not."

Barnaby looked at Kotetsu. His partner nodded back, for once looking completely serious.

"Let's go, everyone."

* * *

><p>The first thing Pao-lin noticed was the jacket beneath her head. The second was Ivan. There was an expression of fear and worry on his face, that quickly faded into relief as she opened her eyes.<p>

"You're okay!" He whispered. "Don't try to sit up so fast. That's what happened last time. The effects of the gas haven't quite worn off yet." As he helped her up, she saw the burns. He saw her looking and shrugged.

"It's okay. It's wasn't your fault. Besides, they're minor."

"I'm sorry."

"I told you, it's okay. They don't really hurt."

Pao-lin looked down at the dirty floor.

"I screwed up again." Ivan stood up and walked over to the sink. He turned the faucet hesitantly and was rewarded. He filled his hand with water and splashed her. She stared at him with shock.

"You didn't screw up." He smiled at her. "Stop being so pessimistic. Everything is going to be okay. I promise you. We're going to be okay."

As she hugged him, he almost believed that he spoke the truth.

* * *

><p>"We have located the suspect. He entered an apartment complex about 3 minutes ago. Permission to attack?"<p>

"Right. Sky high, monitor the windows. Everyone else, partner up. Go door to door. Start evacuating." Agnes' voice cut in through the radios in the hero's helmets.

"Roger."

They hated to have to do it like this, but important higher ups would be pissed if they randomly started breaking into people's apartments and destroying everything.

They didn't realize that it would be much of an issue. Tiger & Barnaby were on the 3rd floor when they heard the struggle.

As they reached the door, the familiar voices they had heard suddenly ceased, and they were left in an eerie silence.

Neither of them knew what was behind that door, and neither of them wanted to imagine what could be behind that door.

None of that mattered. They took a deep breath, and together, they kicked down the door.


End file.
